[Lostlambs]

I have saved back my fleece from the shetlands this year. Have no idea how to prepare it for storing and packaging. Here the norm is to bag all the fleece in burlap huge bags and then take it to a wool depot who ships it out every second year by train. I want to sell my fleece locally so would like to know how to get it ready for that.I have them now just as they came off laid out on a cart. Thanks ahead for any pointers

[jaykay]

You need to skirt them, ie remove any dirty and very straggly stuff.
Pick out as much vegetable matter as you can.

Wash and dry them.

Then store them in burlap or pillow cases - something breathable.

Handspinners will buy them like that. There's more processing to be done, carding etc before they can be spun but many spinners will do that themselves.

Washing them makes them more pleasant to store and to deal with, plus they're less likely to attract the dreaded moths.

[SingingShearer]

Actually washing fleeces makes them more likely to attract moths, I have raw fleeces that have been stored for years that are still ok but washed wool only lasts a year or two at the most without attracting moths.

There are spinners who prefer raw wool and some who don't but most spinners will buy raw fleece so long as it is good quality and fairly clean.

Philip

[SallyintNorth]

Dot at Yarnmaker Magazine maintains a page with useful links for selling and washing fleece etc - the leaflets were produced by The Wool Clip, the people who organise Woolfest, so they're the business.

[woollyval]

Actually washing fleeces makes them more likely to attract moths, I have raw fleeces that have been stored for years that are still ok but washed wool only lasts a year or two at the most without attracting moths.

There are spinners who prefer raw wool and some who don't but most spinners will buy raw fleece so long as it is good quality and fairly clean.

Philip

Spot on Phillip! Moths like dry fleece...washed fleece or stored too long raw fleece!

[jaykay]

Oh blimey, I was told with such authority (can't remember by whom now, will go and search it out!) that it was unwashed fleece that would get moths and if I washed it, it would be fine. So I did! All that work and it would have been better left 

[SallyintNorth]

There was a discussion on Ravelry recently and it came out about half and half - some people had had moths in only their unwashed fleece, some in only their washed... 

The other thing that you hear is that the grease 'sets' after about Christmas and forever thereafter is harder / impossible to get out.  But then you hear an equal number of stories about people finding >1 year old fleeces that washed up fine... and of course, some that didn't.

[Fleecewife]

I wouldn't bother washing fleece for selling - that's the buyers job     In fact I stopped selling fleece overseas because it has to be washed before posting.
 
For storing fleece, I try to wash it first although it doesn't always happen.  Old raw fleece is not nice to handle nor to spin, although maybe the grease does help to keep it from becoming dry and brittle.  I wash my fleeces so I can store them in a cool room in the house, in sealed plastic bags.  Raw fleece needs to be stored in such a way that it has air circulating to keep it fresh, and this is more difficult to keep moth-free.  I have had moths in both stored raw and washed fleece, as well as woolly jumpers etc when they haven't been stored properly in mothproof bags.  That's a constant battle.  The Wool Scour I use now has Ozzie Tea Tree extract in which should help to deter moths, but smells better than moth balls 
 
For selling fleece, sell it straight after shearing.  You don't then have the problem of storage, and the fleeces are deliciously fresh.  For the short time you do have to store them (after skirting and picking off obvious veg bits), keep them in individual woven polypropylene sacks - making sure there are no holes large enough for moths to crawl in, and tied tightly at the top.  You can also use old pillowcases etc, but the polyprop sacks look nice and smart and can be sent through the post, if you seal the top so it doesn't catch in the post office machinery.  I buy mine from the supplier by the hundred.  Hang the sacks of fleece in an airy but weatherproof barn until they are sold.
 
Jaykay - you certainly didn't waste your time washing the fleeces before storage     As long as they are in airtight bags moths can't get at them, and when you are ready to spin, you are halfway there already, without having to deal with an unattractively flattened, stinky fleece, in the middle of winter when there's nowhere to dry it.
 
 

[SallyintNorth]

in the middle of winter when there's nowhere to dry it.

Or, any time in the calendar at my place    That's been my biggest problem, nowhere to dry washed or dyed fleece.  And the central heating's been out of action for over a month, so I don't even have a radiator I can use.   

I tried suint baths, it's been too cool here this so-called summer, or my fleeces aren't greasy enough, I'm not sure which, but none of the ones I tried seemed to get soapy at all.  I've got two buckets in the airing cupboard now, but even they don't seem to be doing anything.  Maybe I need a big old greasy merino fleece... anyone know what breeds really work to start one of these off?

So that's mainly why I started doing the rainbow-dyeing - you still have to dry it, but it's all ready to use once done, and the method copes with any grease in the fleece.

My own commercial fleece is lovely to spin in the grease, actually, and the yarn washes up beautifully - but although I'm getting quicker, I couldn't spin all my fleece before Christmas! 

[quiltycats]

Today I am washing the last of my held back Ryeland fleeces, I had thought that 3 fleeces would keep me going until clipping time but ummm no it looks like I am going to be twiddling my thumbs at some point in spring.. Getting fleeces dried is a bit of a worry and I do tend to take over every surface and every towel in the house while the process is going on. I read some where that drying with heat was a no no , is this the case or is it okay to bung handfuls over the rads?

The fleece Im really looking forward to clipping now is one of my wild bunch black girls..9 of my flock are non-ryelands  and have their origins in my first flock of shetlands. 25 years back so a shetland texel ryeland conglomeration with all the madness of shetlands. Her fleece felted on the hoof last year so I have fingers and toes crossed that I can get something from her that I can use. Other wise I will be in the market for a black (not brown) fleece.

[SallyintNorth]

I've got some black Zwartbles if that's any good to you, QC.  It's not the softest of fleece but if you want some I have loads 

[quiltycats]

  let me know what you want for one (coughs or two) fleece. 

[clydesdaleclopper]

I have some black fleeces from Gotland x Shetland ewes put to a Black Welsh Mountain tup   

[SallyintNorth]

let me know what you want for one (coughs or two) fleece.

QC you are welcome to a whole one or even two.  I was given 4 (3 black and one grey - surprisingly the grey is the softest); I've been using the grey - it's fun to dye - but will never get even one of the blacks used up - and she's going to give me next year's fleeces too...  So we just have to work out how to get one or two to you...

Oh, I should say - as they are, they look disgustingly dirty and are stuffed full of VM.   My heart sank when I looked at them...  But I washed a bit just to see and found it came pretty clean very easily.     I just give it a cool water soak first, then a light wash - and a good shake   

Or, for using externally, stove-top rainbow-dyeing works, of course! 

[quiltycats]

  ooo thanks Sally, will sort a run out to meet and collect maybe I will make Stanhope even